What with the Asian Dub Foundation bring out their ‘back to form album’ Punkara last month, here’s another Brit-Asian group that have also got Gogol Bordello’s Eugene Hütz to guest on their new album.

And like the ADF album, Hütz and his Gogol Bordello mates Yuri Lemeshev (accordion) and Sergey Ryabtzev (violin) join in on the title track and create something that’s got hit written all over it. And hits is what Trickbaby (aka vocalist Saira Hussain and multi-instrumentalist Steve Ager) are all about as their debut single ‘Indi-yarn’ was the first Hindi language single to be playlisted at BBC Radio 1 and it got into the top 50.

That was over 10 years ago, but they’ve not lost their strength of the softness of Hussain’s voice and that bangin’ Asian beat. It’s when they get this mix of Bollywood right, they are as delightful as a full length feature, like on ‘Light Up My Life’, ‘Crisis’ (did these guys know we something?) and ‘Fighter’. And talking of Bollywood, last year there was a d’n’b version of ‘Neela’, the album closes with a 2008 version and contains a sample from the song ‘Sar Se Sarke’ from the 1981 movie Silsila that’s a bit on the chill side of things.

Pathaan was a bit of fan of ‘Neela’ and if you’re into this, don’t forget his compilation album Supperclub Beauty or Universal Taal Project’s ‘Gypsy.

For a tenuous link, Pathaan’s album contained a track called ‘Delhi To Detroit’ and the other
name guest to appear on Chor Bazaar is ex-Shakespeare’s Sister Marcella Detroit, featuring on harmonica! (once again see the harmonica is back in vogue — Under The Sun and Kenneth Bager’s ‘Fragment Zero (and I Keep Hearing)’ on Brownswood Bubblers Three).

‘Mujay Tujay’ and ‘Broken Dream’ are a bit rockin’ but for the big tune, the first single ‘Nine Parts (Parde Ke Peeche)’ is getting rave reviews as they’ve pushed the boat out as it was filmed in Bollywood, directed by Rohan Sippy, produced by his father Ramesh Sholay Sippy and stars Abhishek Bachchan and Priyanka (ex-Miss World) Chopra (both massive Bolly stars).

Apparently, Johnny Rogues Gallery Depp is a fan and he’s after one of these tracks for his next movie soundtrack; I’m not at all surprised.

Reviewed: Trickbaby — Chor Bazaar (Chachaman Records) Cat. No: GF78608 Release date: 17th Novemer 2008
Tracklisting:
1 Fighter (3:32)
2 Crisis (3:41)
3 Baja (3:58) feat. Pharm Panesar (Dohl), Kevin Pollard (Keyboards), Marcella Detroit (Harmonica)
4 Light Up My Life (4:10)
5 Babu (3:51)
6 Drove A Chevvy To The Devi (3:18) feat. Kevin Pollard (Keyboards)
7 Chor Bazaar (4:21) feat. Eugene Hutz (vocals) Yuri Lemeshev (accordion) and Sergey Ryabtzev (violin)
8 Mujay Tujay (3:19)
9 Broken Dream (3:49) feat. Sahil Khan (flute)
10 Nine Parts (Parde Ke Peeche) (3:40)
11 Neelaa (08) (4:40)

Links:
www.trickbabymusic.co.uk
www.myspace.com/trickbabymusic
www.gogolbordello.com
www.myspace.com/gogolbordello
www.liveindia.com/priyanka